Planning and organisation-write a plan with and objectives and refer/revise it regularly-dont get too sidetracked-dont get obsessive about dotting i's and crossing t's at the expense of making real progress-establish a good work/life balance-organise your hard drive-organise your time-organise your priorities-progress often slower than expected-Dont procrastinate!-know your strengths and weaknesess;play to the strenghts and work on the weaknesses

Network! Network! - invest in relationships with other research students-take and make opportunities-attend conferences, build your network-join discussion lists, groups, professional societies-write a quality website, start blogging and twiterring

Writting -start writing NOW (not literally :D)-It's amazing how many 'obviuos' things you'll forget after a period of time-writing clarifies thoughts and assumptions-good practice for you're the final dissertation-write for publication - dont be scared

Supervisor -make them a friend -they want you to succed-long term professional relationship- agree your ground rules at the start-be honest and keep them informed-hold regular meetings -VERY important-keep a record of meetings and actions-dont be a nuisance or make excessive demands

Questions to ask yourself -why did I choose the topic? (have a GOOD reason, not just because your supervisor suggested it)

Why is it important-is the literature review complete and up to date-is the sample (if you used one) large enough/appropriate?

If I used statistics, how confident am I about the techniques used?-are the results clearly presented-does the discussion explore the findings/results and comment on them?-do i reflect on where my results fit into the literature on the topic-do the conclusions/recommendations follow logically from the results and address my aims/objectives?-How did I overcome any problems encountered?-what are the implications of my work?

Can it be taken further?-What is the "value added", innovative or creative about the work-what weaknesses are there in the research? Be honest about that!